Types of Students and Learning Preferences

Using results from a nationally representative online survey of 2,006 public and private school students conducted in 2016, the report picks out six dominant categories of students and suggests some ways to help them feel more connected and interested in school. The six dominant categories of students are as follows: subject lovers, emotionals, hand raisers, social butterflies, teacher responders, and deep thinkers. The report states that given that students are motivated to learn via different levers, student engagement and choice—among schools, teachers, courses, delivery options, instructional strategies, and so on—need to go hand in hand. 

Thomas B. Fordham Institute (2017). What teens want from their schools: A national survey of high school student engagement. Washington, D.C.: Thomas B. Fordham Institute. https://edexcellence.net/publications/what-teens-want-from-their-schools